June 26, 2010
Notes from Joe
Hello all!
Joe and I have decided to merge our blogs. He will, however, continue to post here with a new series we’ll call Notes from Joe. We will gradually bring his existing posts from Born to Pull onto this blog and he will create new content as well. So, let’s get this rolling…
-Andrea
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Under the muted green glow of Northern lights streaming overhead in the arctic sky, Pete and Lupine were born. It amazes me every time I see these photos. I wonder if it was a miracle or just simply a testament to an ancient and purebred dog’s instincts to survive in one of the earth’s most brutal environments. The credit though, goes to their mother, Tikka. She persevered daily nurturing the pups and keeping them warm in -50 F temperatures and windstorms.
It was a fascinating experience to watch Tikka dig a nest in the snow every night down to the tundra’s soft, dry reindeer moss and shield them from the arctic environment with her warm body and thick fur. And it was just as fascinating to observe how the two pups grew wildly fast and adapted to the cold.
I remember one early morning in March when Pete and Lupine were only three weeks old and the temperature was -30 F. I noticed the two pups curled up and sleeping comfortably a few feet away from their mother. They seemed perfectly natural, content and healthy lying on the tundra and not bothered in the least by the cold. They were truly born to be in the arctic.
The following photos are by Angus Mill.
Tikka, a first time mother, resting comfortably with her two youngsters. What a dedicated mom – just amazing!
Pete and Lupine’s first taste of dog food (I think they preferred mother’s milk).
At five weeks old, Pete and Lupine had a healthy layer of insulating fat like polar bears. They weighed around 10 lbs. each.
